LAW INFORCEMENT IN SOVIET RUSSIA

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP75-00001R000100180003-5
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 31
• Document Creation Date: December 9, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 21, 2000
• Sequence Number: 3
• Content Type: REPORT

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yaw,
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y' rid
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In js SW these who 4t
ah A
90 a" now gem
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to the
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t 1 1 `)IN 3t- CODE 01- rhE. l
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The
to
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such thing in the Soviet Union. It is also very unlikely
that he can win acquittal with a good lawyer because defense
.Liornevvs in the USSR don't really defend their clients as
we unaers anti the term. They point out extenuating circus-
stances to the court, and help to show the defendant that
has wandered from the straight and narrow path of communism.
'I-his is easy to do because there are so many acts which
are unlawful. Murder, robbery, assault and the other 00200a
Grimes, of course, are on Soviet statutes, but so are a number
of things which would never pass for crimes in a Western society.
4peculation is one of these. This consists of buying up goods
at one price and selling them for a profit; we would call it
retail merchandising. Making war propaganda in any form is
considered a crime against the state but this one obviously
isn't very rigorously enforced. And a couple of weeks ago,
Pravda ran an article about a young lad who was arrested by
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the secret police for committing still another anti-state
crime. He had spread "hostile rumors" that he had picked
.gyp from listening to foreign news broadcasts. These cases
-trike %.is as rather ridiculous, but they are punishable in
the USSR with as much as 15 years imprisonment.
Given such a stringent set of laws, the job of the Soviet
policemen should be quite busy but relatively simple. It is
cu,uplicated, however, by the rather peculiar outcome of Khrusb-
chiev' s campaign to break the back of the Stalinist police empire.
As I mentioned a moment ago, this campaign was successful, but
it was Accompanied by a major propaganda drive to prove to
the people that the days of police terror were finally over. At
this point the Kremlin apparently went a little too far.
In its effort to sake itself popular Khrushchev's new regime
painted such a black picture of the past that two things hap-
pened. The common people lost some of their dread fear but
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none of their traditional hatred of the police. The law
enforcement agencies themselves were demoralized, Despite
a rather feeble attempt to repair the damage with propaganda
praising their loyalty and efficiency, the moral* of the
Soviet civil police still seems to be quite low. There is
no real esprit de corps among then, no sense of being the
"pride of the finest." This, of course, has its negative
effect {:gin law enforcement, and certainly does nothing to dis-
courage crime. As for the people themselves, they may respect
the laws of their country to some extent, but the amt oo^rnon
attitude toward the patrolmen on the beats is indifference,
and sometimes open disrespect which borders on contempt.
It Is bad enough, I suppose, to work in law eaforosawt
under these circumstances. What sakes it worse it the rate
of crime in the Soviet Union. This is something abst wdish
Moscow has always been very closemouthed, and with good r s .
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The standard party line claims that crime results from
capitalism and the exploitation of the working Kan. Under
communism, there is no exploitation, and thus all the
causes of crime have been eliminated. If this were true,
the logical conclusion is that crime cannot exist in the
USSR. Of course, this line of reasoning is a lot of
Marxist nonsense which only makes the existence of crime
an embarrassing fact for the Kremlin to admit. In
point of fact, the Soviet leaders are no closer to solving
the problem than they were when they case to power
42 years ago.
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They say that they have succeeded in reducing crime, and
they sometimes reduce the size of the police apparatus in
various places on the grounds that there is not enough
crime to keep the police busy. We feel that these claims of
reduced crime rates are primarily propaganda for home con-
sumption. We have no real evidence that crime in Russia has
dropped to any appreciable extant, and a little later I'll
give you our reasons for thinking that it might actually be
on the increase.
The Soviets never publish crime statistics; in contrast
to the United States, where we are open and above board about
our shortcomings--and where crime stories make good copy
accounts of robberies or mardiers very seldom appear in the
tightly censored Russian press. When they do, they are
usually accounts of "show' trials and are intended primarily
as warnings to would-be lawbreakers kbtt retribution will be
swift and decisive. Those few arises which the Soviets
admit to are always b law id as ftet they call "the remaats
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of capitalism in the minds od the people." If they really
believe this, they have to admit that the capitalist spirit
in Russia is not nearly as dead as Mr. Khrushchev would like
it to be. The truth of the matter is that the very nature
of a communist society is probably as such to blame for crime
as any other factor. I don't want to burden you with a descrip..
tion of the workers' paradise, but a couple of factors are
worth keeping in wind. In the first place, the USSR does
not have the classless society of which Marx dreamed by any
stretch of the imagination. The economic gap between the
common working man and the executive is much greater than
that in this country. Regardless of all the high-aoaadisg
propaganda, the people are not equal. They are divided into
the "haves" and the "have mots." For over forty years now,
the Soviet Union has concentrated on building up a powerful
heavy industry. The production of consumers' goods has never
met demand, a*d those goods which have been produced are sa
highly priced that they are beyond the reach of the average
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worker. Therefore, the elite--the managers and communist
party big-wigs--get them. Human nature being what it is,
people have a natural desire for the better life--for a wash-
ing machine, a new TV, a refrigerator or a car. But there is
for the Russian worker the very serious problem of money. In
addition, living conditions in major Soviet cities are terribly
overcrowded, and those of you who head police departments in
large American cities know what that can mean.
Against this very general background, what we have been
able to piece together about crime in the Soviet Union becomes
fairly understandable. As you may already have guessed,
robbery is by far the most common crime with which the Soviets
have to contend. Embezzlement, murder and speculation are
next in order of frequency. of the four most cosonly com-
mitted crimes, three have as their object the obtaining of
money or goods--or both, Fraud and bribery are also high on
the list, and recently there has been a rather NOM! increase
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in the incidence of moonshining. Russians are traditionally
hearty drinkers and moonshining has always been cvmon. Mr.
Khrushchev's recent edicts cutting down on the sale of vodka
have apparently led increasing numbers of his thirsty and
enterprising citizens to brew their own booze.
Misdemeanors are lumped into the broad category of
"hooliganism," This equates generally to disturbing the
peace, and the most frequent offense is being drunk. Drinking
is a serious problem both socially and economically. Moscow
claims that 70 percent of the major crimes are committed by
persons under the influence of alcohol, and about 40 percent
of Moscow's traffic accidents are attributable to drunkeness
of drivers or pedestrians. The regime also considers drinking
dangerous because it results in absenteeism and poor work an
the job,
Now many crimes are committed by juveniles we don't
know, but the Kremlin's claim that it is less than 5 percent
should be swallowed with a very large grain of malt; Th.y have
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just as much trouble with juvenile delinquency as anybody
else, and maybe more.. Once again, the Soviet system seers
to bear a large share of the blame. In almost all Russian
families, both father and mother have to work to make ends
meet, The kids, from their earliest years, do not receive
their full share of parental guidance and family life, For
the most part whatever sense of belonging they have comes from
the state nurseries. Many only finish 7-year schools, and
are free of such home ties as they have by the time they are
15. They run in street gangs and get pretty rough at times,
I don't know how many of you read Harrison Salisbury's
article on Russian social Ills in the New York Times
VWft, but his description of one such gang is worth repeating.
A group of young hoodlums cornered the son of an army colonel
at a new housing development and solicited his help in robbing
his father's apartment. gbon the boy refused, they pinned
him against the wall and broke his legs with a sledge h$ er.
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One evening a couple of months ago, another gang knifed and
drowned a husband and raped his wife.
I don't want to imply that such cases are typical of
Soviet youth or even of Soviet juvenile delinquents, But
they do serve to illustrate the problems the Kremlin is
running into with the younger members of that generation
which grew up entirely under communism. The majority of
those kids whom we would dlassify as delinquents are charact.
erized by their nnon-conformism. They are known as the "stil-
gaga," a take-off on the Russian word for style, becase they
are habitually flashy dressers. They favor loud sport
jackets and ties, pegged pants and crepe-soled shoes,
-[hey are avid fans of rock-and-roll, and an
American jazz record is a prized possession, It is no secret
that they mimic western styles and are constantly on the look-
out for any item manufactured in the West, It can be anything
from a fountain pen to a piece of chewing gut, and they are
willing to pay fantastic prices for such souvenirs. According
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to the Soviet press, the stilyaga are not very such inclined
to go to work in factories, but want to spend their time
drinking, listening to rock and roll music, and disturbing
the peace in general,
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When these kids are apprehended for committing a crime,
they are tried in an adult court if they are to or over o In
cases of the major crimes of murder, rape and assault with a
cleanly weapon, the legal age of responsili.ity is 144 It is
not a crime to dance rock and roll or to imitate Western styles
or nnauner : ; however, thesse habits are anti.-social by Soviet
st.acxdard, and this is Just one step away from anti-Soviet
Lehavic'r. icr tYhis, the kids siometimes get some very special
attention.
As yr u can see, the police have ?nough to worry about
iust to enforce the lax under conditions which are far
from the best. They are or.;a nized for the job in much the
same way that your own eepartwents are, with one major ezceptioni.
Police turf. es in Ru Asian towns and cities3 are subordinate to
the local government, b t at, the iaame time are directed from
Moscow. xll police departments are a part of the chief directorate
of militia of the USSR internal affairs ministry--thee MVD.
This situation would be the wane a& having your departments
working simultaneously for the city and for the Department of
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Justice 2ssam in Washington,
1 ciderstally, the word "militia" does not mean the same
thing to the hussiaus as It uoes to us. This is simply
anuther reflection of the peculiar Marxist way of thinking.
It seems that ?do , ace . i z, a capitalist word--and therefore
onne wr,lc::? a.:.:n. + x,lre~, Lo a communimt -institution.
"' t i l.tia k LLnef, :substitute; out it means nothing more nor
i :.:ss taan ": _ lie .
The militia department of a Soviet city have a central
headquarters and subordinate precinct stations. The force
is divided into several unite iociuding the regular street
patrol, a criminal investi~,atiun department, traffic safety
and autumot,iie inspection units, motorcycle squads, harbor police,
and a squad whidh specializek+ in combatting speculation and
theft of state property. There is also a section for internal
passport control. All Soviet citisess over 16 years of age
are required by law to tarry a passport at all times. This
is the basic identity document and must be produced on demand.
If a citizen visits another city for a period exceeding three
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" 20
tt '
2.61
1oootw
Boston,and 1.93 per 1000 for Cleveland.
3.90
1 wcVw 1000 t*
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citizen has ever been inside one of these places, so we don't
really know what techniques are employed on the victim. What-
?
ever it is apparently works.) The drunk emerges after a couple
of hours in a somewhat shaken but completely sober state.
To continue in a more serious vein, information of any
kind about the Soviet Union has always been very hard to come
by and detailed information on the workings of the police is
next to impossible to obtain. We do know that at least in the
major cities, the police enjoy the benefits of the latest
developments in scientific crime detection and that they employ
the time tested methods of criminology used the world over.
Finger-printing, "mug books" of known criminals, police radio
nets and interrogations of suspects are as common to them as
to us. They also make use of what is probably the worlds'
most hily developed system of informers. Just to give you
an example, every apartment house has a sort of major domo,
and every city bloc has a "block chairman." These people
plus the maids in hotIl$ habitually report to the police on
the comings and goings of the people they serve.
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The civil police evidently do not do much plain-
clothes work. This kind of activity seems to be al wat
the exclusive province of another law enforcement agency
whici I have deliberately not mentioned up to this point.
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The Soviet secret police are in a class by themselves.
They are now known as the KGB, or Committee of State
Security. By any name, they are one of the most
efficient police forces in the world. Their business is
spying and they are tops at it. They spy on us, on our
allies, and on their own people. The Russian citizen may
sometimes show considerable disrespect for the civil
police, but he has a real fear and a healthy respect
for the KGB.
Charged only with safeguarding the security of the
Soviet state, the secret police enforce laws dealing with
anti-state crimes. These include such acts as treason,
espionage, sabotage, draft evasion, inciting to riot,
illegal entry into and exit from the country, and revee].ing
state secrets. A few moments ago, I mentioned that Soviet
kids who too closely mimic Western styles and habits
sometimes get special treatment. They are haule4 in by
the XGB, and in most instances, a single session with
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the secret police is quite sufficient to stop whatever kind
of anti-social behavior they have been up to.
I realize that this is a very sketchy description of
the KGB, but I think you will appreciate why this must be.
During the past year, there have been some very
peculiar developments in the field of Soviet law enforce-
ment, and these lead us to believe that perhaps crime and
certainly misdemeanors are on the increase. Several
organizations which amount to vigilante committees have
taken over some of the minor functions of law enforcement.
Squads of volunteer police have been formed in almost all
cities, and patrol the streets1after working hdurs. Their
job is the apprehension of drunks, breaking up loud and
boisterous groups, and bringing in any "hooligans" they
are able to catch. This is no easy task. At least one
member of the volunteers has already been xurderad, and
several have been rather severely beaten and knifed.
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 General meeti lags of the residents of a block of
apartments or of a given street have been e.upowered to
enforce so--cal.ied "anti--parasite" laws against any of
their neighbors who are not inclineu to work for the
common cause.. Such persons as speculators and general
a.oaier:-; can be e:i.led to remote areas for as long as 5 years
by these (neeti.ngs. The latest innovation in this line is
the '.'r;omrade' ~; This is also a Cl tizen's group,
c~rznc d t r itr--ag i'_y era f"actori c s and shops, When a worker
is c.:tai..~r Icdlly drusn4, or beats his wife or i.s frequently
al)se nt ti ofuS work, i!(.., is hailed before the comrades court.
There 1,e is see E:c; i ed to the embaxrassmrien t of having his
misdeeds aired in public, and is stub. eected to monetary
i:inee,. More sericnsss offences are bound over to the
regular police.
Obviously, the chances of injustice are very great.
If you don't like the guy down the street, denounce him
before a session of the comrades' court. Why, than, have
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these organizations come into existence? Marxist
philosophy teaches that as communism approaches, the
state apparatus will begin to "wither away" and will
disappear under conditions of full communism. Soviet
propaganda justifies these vigilante committees by
calling them signs of this process: state functions are
beginning to be turned over to the public as the state
begins to wither. This, too, is a lot of nonsense. The
real reasons seem to be to pressure the people into social
conformity, into the common mold, to force the population
out of its apathy toward crime, and to help the civil
police combat drunkenness and hooliganism. A few days
ago the Minister of Justice of the Russian republic stated
at a press conference that the police force had been cut
by 40% because crime had dropped so much. It may be true
that some cuts have been made. How many patrolgen were
taken off their beats remains to be seen. At the same time,
the justice minister admitted that robbery, public disorders,
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brawls and drunkenness head the list of crimes in his
republic. We will believe that crime has dropped if and
when they publish crime statistics, which are still con-
sidered a state secret, and when we have some real reason
to believe that these statistics are accurate and complete.
Soviet law enforcement does not stop with the
apprehension of a criminal. The whole communist concept
of legs Lity plays a major role in his court trial and
sentencing. Once a suspect has been arrested, there begins
a period of pre-trial investigation, during which the
state prosecutor, or the equivalent of our district
attorney, prepares his basic case. Only when this process
has been completed--in about 10 days or two weeks--does the
accused receive the right to a defense attorney. The
defense counsellor has a right to review all + vids~nrce in
preparing his defense, but please bear in mind what we
said before about t*s role he will play when the case
comes to court. His primary duty is not to defend the
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of law v`, i
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provisions I have already mentioned are also she result
of the new code, such as the right to defense counsel before
a case comes to trial and setting the legal age of
criminal responsibility at 16 years instead of the former
14. In general, the new code reduces the length of
imprisonment for less serious offenses, while increasing
those for major crimes..
All of these reforms are steps in the right
direction, and have done much to lift the weight of
terror from the shoulders of the Russian people. There-
fore, they are to be commended., But the new code does
not go as far as either we or the Soviet citizen had
hoped that it would,, Before the code was published, there
was much heated debate in Soviet legal circles on the
presumption of innocetnce; this was a very healthy sign,
and many lawyers thought that this would at last become
a fundamental principle of Soviet justice a But no such
basic safeguard over the rights of the individual was
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be
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